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Eižens Finks: A Family Story from Limbaži and Vidzeme
By Baiba Mazure
raksta autore
December 11, 2025
This is the first article in our new reader-contributed series Latvian Genealogies, where we publish carefully sourced family histories to help researchers and relatives find each other across borders. Latvian families experienced migration and exile for generations; making names, dates, places and spellings searchable in English helps descendants reconnect. To contribute your family story, write info@latvija.fm.
Overview
Eižens Finks is a name linked to historic families of Latgale and the Limbaži region. His life and kin reveal both maternal (Brauna/Brūne/Čauna) and paternal (Finks/Puriņš) lines reaching back into the 18th century, reflecting everyday rhythms, challenges, and connections in rural Latvia. All personal names and place-names below are kept in their original Latvian spellings as found in records; explanatory text is in English.
Maternal line: Brauna / Brūne / Čauna
Mother: Līze Brauna (later Čauna in her first marriage; later married Jānis Johans Finks).
  • Born 1 Oct 1885, Ķipēnu muiža, Katvaru pagasts, Limbažu novads.
  • Maternal grandmother: Anna Brūne (b. 1823, Ķipēnu muiža, Pociems).
  • Anna’s father: Ādams Brūne (b. 1775).
  • Ādams’s father: Indriķis Brūne (b. 1725–1769 range).

These lines mirror historical life in Limbaži’s estates and villages (see Umurgas and Ārciema Latvian/German congregational registers, 1855 births and baptisms).
Paternal line: Finks / Puriņš
Father: Jānis Johans Finks (b. 6 May 1851, Pociems).
  • Grandfather (by adoption): Ādams Finks (b. 1803), adopted son of Pēteris Pauls Finks (b. 1775).
  • Pēteris Pauls Finks married a woman born 1738–1798 (name not recorded in the supplied notes).
  • (See Viļķene parish archives for Ķirbiži and Finks family entries.)
  • Paternal grandmother: Jekaterina Finks (Trīne Puriņš) (b. ~1830, Pociems).
  • Her father: Ancis Puriņš (b. 1791, Ķiukuļi).
  • Her mother: Anna Puriņš (b. ~1800).
  • Line extends to Andrejs Puriņš (1695–1755).
  • (See Pociems and Katvari parish archival family records.)
Siblings and family losses
Children of Jānis Johans and Līze Finks (besides Eižens):
  • Malvīne Dagmāra Finks (b. 1883), lived eight weeks.
  • Johans Fēlikss Finks (b. 1884), lived four days.
Short lives like these remind us of 19th-century rural vulnerabilities and the grief families often endured.
Why this family matters
Taken together, the maternal Brauna/Brūne/Čauna and paternal Finks/Puriņš lines place Eižens Finks at the center of a multi-generational story that illuminates Limbaži and Viļķene parish social structures and local heritage. The roots trace to at least the early 1700s, with each bearer adding a thread to Latvia’s historical fabric.
Sources (as provided by contributor)
  • Umurga and Ārciems Latvian and German congregational registers (births/baptisms, 1855).
  • Limbaži regional archival materials on Ķipēnu muiža, Pociems, and Katvari parish.
  • Viļķene parish archives (Ķirbiži and Finks family records).
  • Pociems and Katvari parish family records.
Cover image: Latvian National Archives – Latvian State Historical Archives (LVVA), F.235, US4, GV2559, p. 2 (Title page; 1855 parish births & baptisms). Digitised via Raduraksti. Editorial/non-commercial use; illustrative purposes only.
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